CCAM Breaks Ground for New Facility

March 31, 2011

Disputanta, Virginia, March 31, 2011 – Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and the presidents of the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech and Virginia State University today joined with executives from some of the world’s biggest names in manufacturing to officially break ground for the Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing (CCAM), a unique collaborative research facility in Prince George County, Virginia, that promises to accelerate the transfer of laboratory innovations to manufacturing production lines where they can improve efficiencies, products and profits.

“With a turn of the dirt today, Virginia is preparing a new foundation for manufacturing in the Commonwealth and in the nation,” said Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell. “Global dynamics will always influence where products are made, and CCAM’s collaborative, creative approach to advanced manufacturing techniques gives the Commonwealth a leadership role in determining how the world’s most advanced products are made.”

The groundbreaking puts in motion construction of a 50,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art facility. Under its roof, best-in-class manufacturers will collaborate with accomplished faculty and students from Virginia’s top research and teaching institutions to perform advanced manufacturing research in two priority areas: surface engineering and manufacturing systems. When complete next year, the facility will house computational and large-scale production labs, as well as open production space for heavy equipment and surface coating processes, including a thermal spraying machine, a directed vapor deposition machine, integrated data acquisition systems and a thermal conductivity measurements system.

“CCAM is a game changer for manufacturing operations in this country and around the world,” said David Lohr, the newly appointed president and executive director of CCAM. “Its collaborative model joins academic research with manufacturing’s drive for competitive advantage and it promises new, valuable innovations faster than ever before.”

CCAM is the only collaboration of its kind in North America and it promises its member companies significant benefits. By pooling resources to pursue university research authorized by member companies, CCAM increases the value of the R&D dollar. R&D risks and costs are shared by members – away from live production floors – and research results are shared with all members, allowing them to capitalize on new, breakthrough developments that emerge from CCAM research.

In addition to breaking ground for the research facility, CCAM also announced today the founding companies that will anchor the CCAM facility and its initial research operations. They are:

Canon Virginia Inc. – Located in Newport News, Canon Virginia Inc. produces new products using advanced manufacturing methodologies while also serving as a factory service center for repair and refurbishment of Canon cameras, video recorders and office products. (www.cvi.canon.com)

Chromalloy – Based in Orangeburg, N.Y., Chromalloy provides parts, repairs, maintenance and overhauls of gas turbines used in aviation and in land-based applications. (www.chromalloy.com)

Newport News Shipbuilding – Newport News Shipbuilding is a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries. Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) designs, builds and maintains nuclear and non-nuclear ships for the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard, and provides aftermarket services for military ships around the globe. For more than a century, HII has been building more ships, in more ship classes, than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. Employing nearly 38,000 in Virginia, Mississippi, Louisiana and California, its primary business divisions are Newport News Shipbuilding and Ingalls Shipbuilding. (www.huntingtoningalls.com)

Rolls-Royce – Rolls-Royce is a world-leading provider of power systems and services for use on land, at sea and in the air, and has established a strong position in global markets – civil aerospace, defense aerospace, marine and energy. Headquartered in London, Rolls-Royce employs over 39,000 skilled people in more than 50 countries, including some 7,000 employees in the United States. (www.rolls-royce.com)

Sandvik Coromant – Sandvik Coromant is the world’s leading producer of tools for turning, milling and drilling. The company is headquartered in Sandviken, Sweden. (www.sandvik.coromant.com/us)

Siemens – Siemens is a worldwide leader in the fields of automation systems, industrial controls and industrial software. Its portfolio ranges from standard products for the manufacturing and process industries to solutions for whole industrial sectors that encompass the automation of entire automobile production facilities and chemical plants. As a leading software supplier, Siemens optimizes the entire value-added chain of manufacturers – from product design and development to production, sales and a wide range of maintenance services. (www.siemens.com/industry)

As Organizing Industry Members, these companies will play a significant leadership role in CCAM. Company officials will join representatives from the university organizing members (UVA, VT and VSU) on CCAM’s board of directors to oversee the facility’s development, its research priorities and its outreach to additional prospective member companies. Recruitment efforts are well underway. Aerojet, a California-based provider of rocket propulsion systems, joined CCAM last month. Announcements of additional members are expected soon.

“By joining CCAM, these companies demonstrate confidence in its ability to transform manufacturing research,” said Lohr. “It will improve products and profits through research – and it will change how global business and industry perceive central Virginia.”

For Prince George County and the Petersburg and Richmond regions, CCAM and its manufacturing members represent a powerful economic development engine that promises to bring additional businesses, new jobs and a global reputation for excellence in advanced manufacturing research. Additionally, next month, Rolls-Royce will begin producing jet engine parts at a new plant just north of CCAM, a development that also promises further economic activity in the region as suppliers and other support businesses start.

Other regions in Virginia also will see benefits from CCAM. With financial assistance to build CCAM from Virginia’s Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission, CCAM will invest in new workforce development programs in Southside Virginia that will re-tool Virginians to meet the demands of advanced manufacturers.

Representatives from CCAM’s founding members share their perspectives below on the opportunities and benefits anticipated from their involvement in CCAM:

Takayoshi Hanagata, Chairman, Canon Virginia Inc.

“Canon is very excited to be an organizing industry member of CCAM. This partnership will allow Canon to further its reputation for promoting innovative, creative and advanced manufacturing techniques. The opportunity to leverage Virginia’s finest universities in a collaborative environment with other global manufacturing leaders, right here in the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a unique opportunity.”

Armand F. Lauzon, President and CEO, Chromalloy

“What’s great about CCAM is the coming together of manufacturing leaders from around the world to approach shared manufacturing problems with different business and operational perspectives. Working together with university research teams, we anticipate the collaboration at CCAM will generate new ideas and solutions that advance our business.”

“We are very impressed with the success of similarly structured Research Centers located in other countries. These centers have a proven track record of transitioning member-driven, new technology to industry. We are also excited about the ability to draw on the expertise from other Research Centers and to focus research capabilities at Virginia Tech, the University of Virginia and Virginia State on coating technologies and manufacturing processes that are specific to Newport News Shipbuilding.”

William T. Powers, Executive Vice President and CFO, Rolls-Royce North America

“Rolls-Royce has recognized business benefits through our involvement in similar collaborations around the world, and we’re eagerly anticipating new, production-ready innovations from CCAM. Working together with like-minded companies and Virginia’s flagship research institutions will yield both process and product improvements, as well as generate new economic momentum for advanced manufacturing research in this region and across the nation.”

John Israelsson, President, Sandvik Coromant USA

“This type of balance between academia, competence development and ‘real world’ issues will add significantly to our portfolio of solutions. Projects developed at CCAM will lead to sensational reductions in processing time for our customers, increase productivity, lower the cost of production and increase output to help maintain their competitiveness. Projects that roll through the center should be easily applicable to the shop floor, thus generating user value.”

“CCAM will offer a special environment that brings together students, educators and industry leaders to explore new concepts and test ideas, which is difficult to do on a working production floor. At CCAM, there is room for innovation to drive positive changes and create capabilities that offer valuable benefits for all of its industry members. We are delighted to be part of CCAM.”

About the Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing

CCAM is a research collaboration between the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, Virginia State University and manufacturing companies worldwide. Manufacturers join CCAM as members and guide research with university faculty in two focus areas: surface engineering and manufacturing systems. CCAM is building a 50,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art research facility near Petersburg, Virginia, adjacent to Rolls-Royce’s new jet engine components plant.

THE COMMONWEALTH CENTER FOR ADVANCED MANUFACTURING "CCAM" IS WHERE THE BEST OF INDUSTRY, ACADEMIA AND GOVERNMENT COME TOGETHER TO SOLVE ADVANCED MANUFACTURING CHALLENGES.

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October 4, 2019

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